The art for this invention is Class 248, Supports, for articles which carry the weight of a fluid handling flexible line, and contain the flexible line against the pull of gravity.
“Suppose you wanted to put an attached implement head on your loader, but the flexible lines that run to the attachment head from the loader are too long or too short?”
It is the primary object of this invention to use flexible line supports to route the flexible lines orderly, and to secure lines in a manner such that the lines will not snag or drag on loader treads, on the ground, or other obstacles.
A further object is to provide directional control of lines to turn to the left or to turn to the right from the support piece.
Although the principles of the invention may have wide application, the principal field to which the invention is applicable is designed primarily for the use of loader-attached implements.
Advancements in the arborist's industry, which uses loaders widely, see new attachments being offered commercially to the public on an increasing frequency. Flexible lines must adapt to the new and different attachments that fit to loader oil pressure sources. As industry dealers, such as Kubota and Bobcat, maximize the number of quick attachments available for commercial use, this line holder is found to be useful with different manufacturer's attachment tools.
In a typical arrangement in this field, a loader is equipped with means for supplying pressurized fluid to a fluid motor located on a loader-attached implement. It is characteristic of loader-attached implements that the fluid motor on the attached implement is located at a point relatively remote from the source of fluid pressure on the loader. The distance between fixed line connections on a loader and the coupling fittings on an attached implement is of variable length because various attached implements are fitted to the loader during different work operations. This variable length may further increase when the attached implement, say a root grapple implement, is opened or closed during the course of usage. Normally, the flexible line attached to the flexible connections on a loader are substantially longer than the normal straight-line longitudinal distance from the pressure source to the attached implement.
In the practice of loader operation's, it is typical to leave a flexible line unsupported, which may cause damage to the line from various means such as rubbing or dragging on loader treads or dragging on the ground.
As there is considerable relative movement between the loader and an attached implement, and because of the work conditions under which the loader and the attached implement operate, there is a likelihood that the lines will be damaged if not properly supported between the loader and an attached implement.